Residents in the town of DeWitt are insisting that Onondaga County keeps them informed on redevelopment plans for the former Shoppingtown Mall site.
Now that the county has complete control of the 65-acre parcel, residents are eager to finally see some movement on a project. Angela DeSantis lives nearby and was one of many who complained about the condition of the property at a town hall-style meeting hosted by county executive Ryan McMahon earlier this week.
“All these years, we’ve been held hostage by the county," she said in an interview after the meeting. "We see the graffiti, we see the weeds growing, and we can't do anything about it. So we want McMahon to actually have some accountability with the residents and the town government.”
County Executive McMahon said he and his team will do a better job addressing property maintenance until it’s turned over to a developer.
“We've been trying to unfortunately, for years, to get site control, right? We got a lot of skin in the game. We're right there with you," he said in response to a similar concern expressed during the meeting. “Certainly, we would have liked this to all have been done three or four years ago. Once we're looking at the finalists, we'll talk to your elected leadership and we'll get their input.”
McMahon said the county is accepting requests for proposals and expects to make a decision sometime in June. While that process is confidential due to competition, numerous residents demanded more transparency.
Sam Feldman just moved to DeWitt in August from out of state, and admitted he doesn’t know much about McMahon. But he is interested in what future plans include.
“I just want to be optimistic. I hope that he holds himself accountable," Feldman said. "It looks like he cares about the community. We just have to wait and see if he keeps his word. We'll see what the two proposals they narrow it down to actually look like, and we'll see if they reflect our interests.”
McMahon said a mixed use project is ideal, with a strong anchor tenant, possibly in the high-tech field. He imagines some form of empty nester housing like condos, along with unique retail and other elements that re-purpose parts of the old mall.
Residents expressed a desire for green or open space, senior housing, and had concerns about plans that are too industrial or generate too much traffic.
COUNTY HOLDS THE CARDS
Since the county owns the entire parcel, town government has little control over what happens. But DeWitt supervisor Max Ruckdeschel said he has an open line of communication with county executive Ryan McMahon and regularly shares residents’ concerns and desires.
“I do believe that the county executive has a personal inherent interest in having a project that the community likes," he said. "I don't think he wants to have to fight the community on a project that everybody hates.”
McMahon said he and his team will review each proposal thoroughly, and he'll take full responsibility.
“So at the end of the day, the buck's going to stop with me," he said. "I'm the elected CEO, right? So at the end of the day, if you don't like the proposal, it's my fault.”
Some at the meeting including Angela Desantis worry about the future of the adjacent Scotch and Sirloin restaurant that's been operating since 1969.
“That's an institution around here. We want that business here," she said. "Local business is important, too. I don't want it to be all chains.”
McMahon said whomever takes over the site will also own the restaurant. For that reason, he can’t make any promises.
“I don't know how you can have a successful center-driven project without great dining options," McMahon said. "I would think that the Scotch, if they want to be part of a solution, that would be smart business to keep them part of that.”
